Untied Kingdom

The first ministers of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have declared that "Westminster's time is coming to an end".

The nationalist leaders from Plaid Cymru, Sinn Féin and the SNP - who want their countries to leave the United Kingdom - signed an agreement on Monday which said no Westminster government had the right to "block democracy".

But while Scotland's John Swinney and Northern Ireland's Michelle O'Neill called for referendums at a joint press conference, Wales' Rhun ap Iorwerth declined to give a timetable for one in his country.

Now, while Wales, Scotland and the various Irelands have been duking it out with England for centuries — see Michael Collins, Braveheart and...well, they don't really have a good movie about Welsh independence (How Green Was My Valley doesn't seem quite right), with Scotland gaining independence-lite a few years back, the various parties have been keeping it to a dull roar for most of the past century.  

The first ministers of Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland have signed a referendum pushing for independence from the United Kingdom.

In it, the leaders committed to working together and taking steps toward more independently governed nations.

How did we get here? 🧵⬇️ pic.twitter.com/9T19lcuqJ9

— Encyclopaedia Britannica (@Britannica) September 14, 2026

Is this different?  Is it historical and political? 

Well, maybe.

Back in May, the shape of British politics shifted dramatically. I’ll forgive you if you were too preoccupied refreshing Andrew Sparrow’s live blog for the latest speculation about Keir Starmer to notice, but since 7 May, centre-left nationalist parties that ultimately aspire to leave the UK have been in government for the first time simultaneously in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

This week sees the initial codification of that shift. In Cardiff yesterday, Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth, Scottish National party leader John Swinney and Sinn Féin vice-president Michelle O’Neill (who shares power with the Democratic Unionist party) affirmed their countries’ right to seek independence from the UK. Along with the leader of the opposition in Ireland, Mary Lou McDonald, they signed a memorandum of understanding that called on Westminster “to prepare, plan and facilitate constitutional change in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland”. And they posed for a fair number of group photos too.

  It may just also relate more to Eurozone politics and social spending this time around:'

The declaration signed by Scotland’s John Swinney, Wales’s Rhun ap Iorwerth and Northern Ireland’s Michelle O’Neill will cover four key areas, according to the report: economy, energy, Europe, and international cooperation and self-determination.

It will state that Scotland and Wales wish to enter the European Union as new members, and that Northern Ireland will enter the EU by way of unifying with the Republic of Ireland, which is already a member.

Wales, according to the report, will use the agreement as a way to pressure Prime Minister Andy Burnham to hand over additional powers to the devolved Welsh government, particularly relating to tax and spending.

Which may involve even more internal squabbling:

The thing is, Wales, Scotland, and NI want to rejoin the EU. How can that be a good thing for them? I'm Welsh, and I don' want Wales back in the failing, corrupt, commie EU. pic.twitter.com/xAwux1eBvM

— Andréas Psarás 🕹 (@APUK1979) September 14, 2026

In the meantime, losing three of the four main components of the union may not be all of the problems, as David pointed out the other day.